The Losers is a Winner But Not By Much

Of the many comic book movies to get adapted for the big screen, the Losers was somewhat of an unknown. This comic, published by Vertigo, was not a heavily followed ongoing series and it certainly wasn't as critically acclaimed as other major titles like Watchmen and V for Vendetta. However, the Losers still had plenty of merit to make itself a movie and the end result is as enjoyable as anyone could hope for.

The main appeal to this movie is the heavy blend of over-the-top action and humor. There are raging gun battles and crazy explosions all throughout the movie in addition to some funny moments that balance out the destruction. In the middle of it all there is still a plot. Five soldiers are framed in an operation in Bolivia that left over 20 innocent children dead. The one who orchestrated this setup, Max, is a shady and obsessively evil arms dealer with ties to the CIA. So the five men go into hiding and have to rely on a mysterious and sexy woman, Aisha, to help them get back into the country and get their revenge on Max.

The plot is simple and so are the details. Nobody needs to be a reader of the comics to appreciate what's going on and nobody needs to be much of a comic fan to enjoy it. The explosions and battles are all well developed and there are even a few twists and turns towards the end that will keep viewers on their toes. There are some witty one-liners to remember and some nice shots of scantily clad women. All around it's full of mindless fun.

That also happens to be one of the movie's shortcomings. As fun as it is, the plot and the action are pretty mindless at times. There isn't a whole lot of depth to the characters or the plot. There aren't a lot of personal elements to really give the story a human touch and at times the story is pretty choppy. There are also some notable plot holes at the end that will leave some viewers scratching their heads and with no resolution it feels incomplete.

Overall, the Losers is still a fun movie. It's not the best comic adaptation by a long shot and it's not the best action movie by a longshot either. But it's still enjoyable and helps wet the appetite for Iron Man 2. It gets a 2.5 out of 5 and worthy praise for doing what it sets out to do.

Jack